NRC TIMELINE

January 1, 2018

* The first-ever NRC of India was published in 1951 in Assam based on Census Report of 1951 containing mes of 80 lakh citizens * Anti-foreigners’ movement started in Assam in 1979 * AASU submitted the first memorandum demanding updating of NRC to Centre on January 18, 1980 * NRC updating issue figured in the first Prime Minister-level meeting with AASU during the anti-foreigners’ agitation on February 2, 1980 * Historic Assam Accord was signed on August 14 midnight in 1985 * AASU submitted modalities to update NRC to Centre as well State Government in 1990 * Centre took the first formal decision to update the NRC as per the Assam Accord’s cut-off date to detect illegal foreigners during a tripartite meeting between Centre, State Government and AASU on November 17, 1999 * Immediately after the tripartite meeting, the Centre had sanctioned Rs 20 lakh to start the NRC update process and released Rs 5 lakh to the State Government. But State did not use the fund and NRC update remained in papers. * AASU gave a boycott call to then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s visit to Assam during an Indo-ASEAN car rally in November, 2004 to protest non-implementation of Assam Accord. * Boycott call forced Dispur to give an assurance to AASU to hold a PM-level talk on Assam Accord implementation. AASU filly withdrew boycott call * On May 5, 2005 the tripartite talk in the presence of then PM Manmohan Singh formally adopted resolution to update the NRC within September 2007. But nothing progressed beyond the talk. * On July 12, 2009 Assam Public Work, an NGO filed a case in Supreme Court claiming the mes of 41 lakh foreigners included in the electoral rolls of Assam * In response to the APW case, the Centre told SC that the NRC 1951 being updated to detect illegal foreigners so that Assam could have electoral rolls of genuine Indian citizens based on updated NRC. Later AASU became an intervener in the case * On April 22, 2010 then Union Home Secretary held a tripartite meeting where the decision to conduct a pilot project to update NRC in Barpeta and Chaygaon revenue circles was taken * While Chaygaon pilot project was successful, violence in July, 2010 that claimed four lives halted the Barpeta project. Barpeta violence made Dispur shelve the entire NRC update * After Barpeta violence, AASU and 26 other ethnic organizations started joint movement for NRC update * Dispur formed two Groups of Ministers (GoM) after the Barpeta violence to chalk out modalities and other formalities for NRC update. GoM consulted AASU, 26 ethnic organizations, AAMSU and other to prepare modalities and application forms for NRC update * Filly it was in 2015 when the Supreme Court’s intervention made the Centre and State start the NRC update work in full swing from the first part of the same year. The NRC authorities were given the deadline of December 31, 2015 to complete the update. * August 31, 2015 was the last date for people to submit applications to enroll their mes in the updated NRC. About 3.2 crore of people submitted NRC applications * But the December 31, 2015 deadline set by SC to publish the NRC was missed and since then the apex Court has been constantly monitoring the update * In the middle of 2017, the SC set December 31 deadline for publication of draft NRC * Even though the RGI (Registrar General of India) sought more time to publish the draft NRC and extend the December 31 deadline up to July 2018, the SC turned down the plea and asked the authorities concerned to publish the partial draft NRC on expiry of December 31 midnight